Document Type

Conference Paper/Presentation

Publication Date

2014

Abstract

Lake-wide estimates of phytoplankton productivity in the Great Lakes are almost non-existent due to their large size and limited sampling. In order to overcome these limitations, a field-validated remote sensing approach was used to estimate lake-wide phytoplankton productivity for lakes Superior, Huron and Michigan. The Great Lakes Production Model (GLPM), a slight modification of original Fee model, was used to provide areal and volumetric estimates of primary production using satellite-derived measures of PAR, KdPAR, and chlorophyll. Photosynthetic parameters were estimated using an empirical model based on historical measurements and simple input variables (i.e., temperature, Julian Day, depth, season, etc.). Modeled production estimates revealed large production changes in lakes Huron and Michigan but not Lake Superior. These changes and their relationship to important drivers (i.e., nutrients, mussels, climate change, etc.) will be discussed.